“You worthless failure… You really think you can lay a finger on an elite like me?! Tch—!!”
Gritting his teeth with a furious expression, Kevin unleashed his magic at the approaching boy.
“Lightning Strike: Thunderbolt!”
The spell Kevin cast was a basic lightning-based attack magic—”Thunderbolt.”
Though fundamental, its power could be adjusted to stun the target, making it widely used for subduing rioters or incapacitating criminals without lethal force.
Its true strength, however, lay in speed.
Even if used by a second-rate mage—say, a D-rank—its velocity would still match or surpass that of an arrow. And when fired by a top-tier A-rank student like Kevin, dodging it with the naked eye was impossible.
At point-blank range—less than two meters—Kevin’s attack was unavoidable.
He could already vividly picture the moment the arrogant fool would collapse in a pathetic heap.
—But.
Kevin’s Thunderbolt passed straight through the boy’s body as if he were made of air.
“Wha—?!?”
Stunned by the impossible sight, Kevin’s eyes widened in shock. —Then, in the next instant—
“—Ghuh—!!?”
Even though the Thunderbolt had missed, there was still nearly a meter between them. Kevin hadn’t taken his eyes off the boy for even a second—and yet, it was as if time itself had skipped. By the time he realized it, the boy’s right fist was already buried in Kevin’s face.
“Guh—AH—!!?”
“—!?”
The punch sent Kevin flying backward, his left cheek swelling as he clutched it in pain, his entire body trembling.
(W-What the…?! It hurts…! What the hell just—?!)
Som and Dominic, witnessing the unbelievable scene, stepped back in shock.
“Y-You… bastard…!!”
Kevin tried to rise and glare at the boy, but the sheer impact of the punch had left him with a mild concussion. His body swayed unsteadily as he grimaced in pain.
The boy looked down at him with cold, merciless eyes.
“Hey, ‘elite.’ What was that about a single finger?”
“—Tch!!”
Kevin’s face twisted with unbridled fury.
(……I’ll kill him!!)
As murderous intent burned inside Kevin, even Som—who had been frozen in fear—finally snapped.
“—Y-You little SHIT—!!”
Reacting purely on instinct, Som swung a wild, heavy punch at the boy. But the boy dodged effortlessly, slipping beneath the reckless swing.
In one fluid motion, his hands shot out—grabbing Som by the collar and shoulder—before yanking him forward and driving a brutal knee strike straight into his gut.
“GUHEH—!!”
The impact crushed Som’s diaphragm, forcing a choked gasp from his lips. His eyes bulged as he crumpled to the ground, writhing in agony.
“You damn—!!”
Dominic, his face twisted in panic and rage, lunged from behind, trying to grab the boy in a full-body tackle.
But just as Dominic’s arms were about to close around him— The boy vanished from his sight.
Dominic stumbled forward, nearly falling over from his own momentum— —When a voice suddenly called out from his blind spot.
“Hey. You okay?”
“—!?”
Dominic whipped his head toward the voice— —Only for a blur to fill his vision.
“—!!”
Before he could even react, a razor-sharp kick smashed into the side of his face.
The brutal roundhouse sent Dominic flying, his body crashing hard onto the ground.
Kevin. Som. Dominic.
All three of them now lay groaning in pain. In just a few seconds—a mere instant—three elite A-rank mages had been utterly overwhelmed by a single C-rank student.
……Had this been a pure magic duel, things might have gone differently.
But Kevin and his group had been dragged into a brawl—one where they had no experience—and were crushed by someone who, by all rights, should have been far beneath them.
“……What’s so fun about hurting those weaker than you? What’s so amusing about trampling on what others hold dear?”
The boy’s voice was quiet, but it seethed with rage.
“Now you get to taste it. The pain you’ve dealt to others.”
With that, he clenched his fist again and began walking toward Kevin, who was still sprawled on the ground.
“I’LL be the one teaching YOU a lesson, you C-rank SCUM—!!”
Kevin scrambled to his feet and fired off another lightning spell—this one far more lethal than before.
……But.
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“W-Why the hell isn’t it hitting?! Damn it—!!”
No matter how many times he cast, his magic phased right through the boy.
“Shit! SHIT—!! Earth Wall: Grand Wall—!!”
After several failed attempts, Kevin finally created a massive stone barrier between them, buying himself distance.
But just as he began backing away— —Something touched the back of his head.
“!?”
The moment Kevin realized it was a hand, his forehead was slammed face-first into the wall.
“GUGH—!!”
The impact disrupted his magic, causing the barrier to crumble into dust.
(Damn it—!!) “Rrgh—!!”
Eyes bloodshot from pain and fury, Kevin twisted his body and threw a backfist at his attacker.
However, the boy immediately bent his upper body and easily dodged it.
Then, targeting Kevin’s wide-open right side, the boy struck with a left uppercut.
“UGH—!!”
A dull thud echoed as the blow struck like a hammer to the liver.
“—GGAHHHH—!!”
Every muscle in Kevin’s body locked up. He couldn’t breathe—couldn’t even scream. His legs gave out as he collapsed, writhing in agony on the ground.
……And then—
“WHOOSH—!!” A spiraling gust of wind shot toward the boy—Som’s desperate last attack.
But just like before, the boy walked right through it, completely unaffected.
“Tch—! W-Wha—?!”
The boy ignored Som’s frustrated click of the tongue and lunged forward, covering the distance between them in an instant.
Though not impossibly fast, his speed was clearly augmented by body-enhancement magic.
Kevin’s eyes widened in realization.
(—I KNEW it!! That’s how he’s—!!)
“—!!”
Som barely managed to raise his arms in a last-second guard, but the boy’s fist slipped through the gap, striking him square in the face.
Som’s head snapped back, blood gushing from his nose as he sank limply to the ground.
“……”
After confirming Som was down, the boy turned back toward Kevin—
silent, yet radiating menace with every step.
“(D-Damn it…! We screwed up…!!)”
Kevin glared up at him, hatred burning in his eyes.
His ribs were cracked from the earlier blow, sending stabbing pain with every breath. Clutching his side with a pained grimace, he could only watch as the boy loomed closer.
(–Physical enhancement magic…!! It was completely a blind spot! I had assumed that only that bastard Alphonse was a magician who used physical enhancement… I let my guard down thinking he was inferior, assuming he was using some mysterious magic, and was completely drawn into his field!! Fighting at such close distance against someone using physical enhancement without knowing it was a fatal mistake…!! …But–)”
Even while showing an expression of pain, Kevin found a chance for a comeback.
“(He’s probably C-rank level as a magician…!? Then, even if he uses physical enhancement, if I know about it beforehand and fight, I won’t lose…!!) …W-wait!!”
Kevin crouched on the ground and suddenly thrust his hand forward to stop the man.
“I-I understand…! We were wrong!! I’ll apologize, I’ll get down on my knees and apologize! I’ll properly apologize to that shorty!! So, won’t you please forgive us!?”
“……”
Hearing this, the man stopped in place.
“……You’re not lying, are you?”
The man glared at Kevin as if confirming his true intentions.
“I-it’s true…! I’m seriously reflecting on it!! So please, forgive me…!!”
Kevin spoke pleadingly to the man.
……Then, the man turned his gaze behind Kevin.
“Then what’s that right hand you’re hiding?”
“Th-this!? Don’t worry about it… This is just…”
Speaking frantically, Kevin suddenly brought his right hand, which had been behind his back, to the front.
“[Flash]! Take this, you bastard!!”
“!!”
As if catching the man off guard, the magic circle that had been secretly deployed emitted an intense flash of light.
“(No matter how fast you become with physical enhancement, you can’t dodge light!!)”
“……!”
Kevin’s prediction was correct. Unlike before when magic seemed to pass through him, the man flinched as if his vision was dazzled by the flash.
“Now!! Ugh…! D-do it!!”
“……Y-yeah!!”
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